As We Are
by IndigoXsoul
Summary: The song began, and the Doctor handed her one end of the silk, which she wrapped around her hand as he did his. His fingers interlaced with hers, "May I have this dance?" - Fluffy romance with a side of humor, Written for their Anniversary: April 22!


**Disclaimer:** I don't own Doctor Who. If I did, River wouldn't be stuck in a computer. She'd be out with the Doctor shooting his hats and helping him save the world.

**A/N**: **( In other words, feel free to skip my useless rambling)** Woohoo! I got this posted on time! I must say, it was quite a challenge as I had it all written and then my computer crashed and I lost the file. :P So I had to go and rewrite this. But I must say, I liked how it turned out the second time much, much better! So basically, this is my way of saying: "HAPPY ANNIVERSARY DOCTOR AND RIVER!"

It's basically complete and utter fluff. So feel free to fan-girl while reading it. I have to give credit to my good friend, Stacymc2012 for helping me with this, because without her this never would've gotten finished! She helped me when I needed to figure out how to phrase things and basically slapped me upside the head and sympathized with me when I lost the file. LOL! So I owe her a big thank you, without her…this would not exist! Oh, and the song is "Scientist" by Coldplay, in case anyone was wondering. Why are you still reading this! Go read the story! (Oh and reviews would be nice ;) hint, hint!)

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**As We Are**

River waltzed back into her cell, giving the guard a tap on the nose as he locked the door behind her. She sighed, setting down her bag and putting her journal on the nightstand, letting her fingers rest on the TARDIS blue cover fondly for a bit before turning away. It had been a long week, what with chasing an Ood slaver ring all around the galaxy. She was ready for just a little bit of downtime. It was her first wedding anniversary after all, and she was beginning to think he'd forgotten. There had been no psychic paper message, no card, no flowers… this end of the time stream was peculiarly quiet. She decided not to worry about it, and walked into the other half of her cell, stopping short. Over the bed was draped a beautiful white dress. It was a sleeveless halter neck, with a long, flowing skirt that would drag well beyond her feet. It was simple satin and lace, and River loved it. She reached forward and plucked up the note that was lying on top of the dress, her fingers trembling with excitement as she instantly recognized the scrawled handwriting.

_ Dinner at 8. It's formal, get ready. I won't be late. X_

A shiver of delight sped up and down River's spine. He hadn't forgotten then! She wondered what things the Doctor had in store for her tonight… would it be dinner under the stars? A dance? Maybe a visit to some remote, gorgeous planet nobody had ever heard of – a place where they could be completely alone? And he'd even promised he wouldn't be a bit late… this had to be something big!

She quickly knelt to reach under her too-small bed, her hand groping around among dust bunnies to find the object she wanted. When she felt her fingertips touch a small box, a smile broke out on her face. She pulled it out. She'd gotten the Doctor an anniversary gift, of course. It had to be small… she couldn't fit anything exactly splendid inside her cell. River sighed, hoping it would be good enough… it probably wasn't, not for such an amazing man, but she'd done her best.

River excused herself (more like used the vortex-manipulator) to a lovely shower in her parent's house. They weren't home, and besides… this was a special occasion, it required more than what she could use in Stormcage. It was glorious, the shower, anything in Stormcage was always freezing cold, and all the soaps and shampoos on the TARDIS were alien and… well…weird. This was just a good old hot shower, with her rose and vanilla soap and shampoo filling the room. She reveled in the delicious lather and the joy of having conditioner on hand. It was funny what life in prison and on the run could do to a girl. It had only been a year and half before that she'd been a newly-christened archaeologist, happy with her books and her apartment, trying to find the Doctor once again. Then, when the Silence had shown up to claim her… her world had been overturned. She'd killed him, ripped apart time in an effort to save her Doctor, saved the universe, and gotten married all in one day. She laughed to herself ruefully, How's that for a wedding?

It took quite a lot of effort to actually turn off the water and go towel off. She shivered in the bathroom air, wrapping the towel around herself and dabbing on a bit of vanilla perfume, she knew he loved it. Quickly, she dried her hair and pulled it back in a half ponytail, securing her unruly spirals in place with a pearled clip. She quickly did her makeup, opting for a more subtle, innocent look for the evening than her normal ruby-red lips and sultry eyes. She just felt it was appropriate with the purity of the dress. River was glad he'd chosen white for her. She'd missed the chance to plan a proper wedding, to choose her bridesmaids and have Rory walk her down the aisle. River had missed going with Amy to choose a wedding dress and throwing the flowers over her shoulder. Her Doctor had seemed to sense all of that. It was so very thoughtful of him to choose white. She quickly cleaned up her presence in the bathroom, and then slipped on the white dress and some simple gold heels. River turned to look at herself in the mirror. It was so odd, so odd seeing herself like this… an almost-bride, but not-a-bride, because she was married already, at a not-a-wedding… and- oh! Her life was so confusing!

But at least they were celebrating an anniversary, which meant that the Doctor saw their wedding in the same way she did… as a wedding. Even if he hadn't actually told her his name, and the band of silk was just a bowtie, and they had been in an alternate universe… they were still married. She was his, always and completely.

River vortexed herself back to her cell, smoothing down her hair and sitting on the edge of the bed. Waiting. Waiting because she knew he would come, he always came, and this time he'd promised he wouldn't be late. She absentmindedly put the box in her clutch purse and swung her legs, the train of the dress pooling on the dusty floor as the clock ticked thunderously on the wall.

She smiled when the familiar grind of the TARDIS engines filled her ears. The guard must've heard because the Stormcage alarm went off and the lights began flash. The TARDIS materialized inside her cell, and her Doctor flung open the door, standing there with his arm outstretched and a daft smile on his face. His eyes lit up as she stood, her curls flouncing and her dress flowing about her, the red light of Stormcage playing across her skin.

"You're beautiful, River." He breathed.

She took his hand and he pulled her inside, shutting the door behind her. All at once, his lips crashed against hers. Her back pressed against the door and her arms wrapped around his neck as his hand wound itself in her hair. The kiss was deep and passionate, openmouthed and bruising, surprising to River. How long had it been on his side?

"Somebody missed me." River gasped out as he finally broke the kiss. He chuckled in return, sending electricity down her spine.

He went back to assaulting her lips, this time it was quick and chaste, ones she easily returned. "You'll have to have me back before midnight." She teased in between nips. "I have a very dangerous father with a sword who might come after you if I'm late for my curfew."

A deep rumble escaped against from his mouth and her lips tingled against his. "Don't want to anger the Roman, do we?" He replied back lowly.

Her breath caught in her throat as he pulled her tightly against him, deepening the kisses, robbing her of air as he captured her entire bottom lip and _sucked_. God, that cologne he was wearing was absolutely intoxicating and all she could think of was his fingers curling in her air and the way his tongue ran over her lip, begging entrance. This was most definitely _her_ Doctor, the one who knew all of her sensitive points and how to kiss her until she couldn't remember her own name, and exactly how she liked her tea and when she needed to be held versus when she needed to be alone.

She pulled back from the kiss, her eyes wide and bright. "Doctor, I think we should at least try to make it to dinner, hmm?"

He made a noise that sounded uncannily like a disappointed whine. "It can wait a few more minutes."

"At this rate we're not even going to make it to the appetizer." River teased.

"You are my appetizer."

"That was terrible."

"I don't care."

The Doctor gently disentangled his fingers from her hair and moved them down to cover her hand. "Dinner." He said softly, all of the passionate thoughts of lovemaking disappearing from his head almost visibly as he remembered that he'd had something planned for her.

"Dinner." River agreed.

The routine heat of the initial greetings now survived, the Doctor turned back into his usual bowtied schoolboy self and River had a chance to get a good look at him. His hair had been swept to the side and gelled, and was now just a little delightfully mussed and his cheeks flushed from the excitement. His eyes sparkled as he gripped her hand. He wore a new suit, a deep black one with absurdly long coattails. His top hat that she vaguely remembered him wearing when he'd arrived in Stormcage had been tossed onto a part of the TARDIS and forgotten. River thought he never looked better.

He gently led her down the halls of the TARDIS and River found her heart beating faster as her brain tried to think of the possibilities. "Where are we going, this time?"

"I thought we could stay in tonight." He replied with a smile.

"Are you trying to seduce me?"

The Doctor laughed freely and then looked back down into her eyes, "Always."

They stopped in front of two large double French doors. River didn't remember this room being on the TARDIS. Her fingers tightened around his and she looked up with a confused half-smile. "So, really, what are we doing?"

The Doctor laughed and shook his head. "Patience, Doctor Song. Spoilers." He teased, using her characteristic word.

She rolled her eyes. "It's a surprise then? I have news for you sweetie," She leaned forward and tapped his nose, whispering, "I'm not easily surprised."

"Well," He said looking around and then licking his lips mischievously, "Would you have been surprised if I had snatched you up in a hallway and handcuffed you?"

River laughed and winked. She could play this game. "Ooh, I kind of like the sound of that." She purred.

"Cheeky."

His cool hand went to her back, brushing the golden skin just above the top of the white fabric, and she took a sharp intake of breath at the intimate skin-to-skin contact. "Ready, love?" He asked with a smile.

She nodded, and so he took a deep breath and opened the doors, giving her a gentle push. She took a step forward and gasped as she was hit with the sight of the room.

To say it was beautiful would be the most massive understatement of all of time and space. The ceiling stretched and soared above her, decked with candled chandeliers that swung above their heads like galaxies of stars. The room flickered and glowed with the light of a thousand candles that filled each nook and cranny. Sweeping over the room, her eyes centered on the lone grand piano, and then they dragged across a floor that was covered in layers of crimson rose petals. For one of the first times in her life, River Song was struck speechless. She whirled to the Doctor, her mouth opening and shutting as she attempted to form a coherent sentence. He simply smiled and gestured to a chair that sat just inside the door.

"Sit, River." He commanded softly.

River looked at him, a question in her eyes, but she did as she was told, spreading her skirt out around her feet so it wouldn't get caught anywhere. Her hearts caught in her throat as he kneeled before her, pulling over a basin of water, a bar of soap, and a towel, and taking off his jacket.

"Doctor, what-?"

He reached up and pressed a finger to her lips. "It's a Gallifreyan wedding tradition." The Doctor explained, rolling up sleeves slowly and then moving to unbuckle her heels, slipping off first the left and then the right. "The husband washes the wife's feet."

Tears sprung in River's eyes and her cheeks grew hot as she watched the proud Time Lord lather up his hands, his long hair falling in his face as his head was bowed. She deftly wiped away one tear that threatened to fall as he took her foot and began to wash it. "River Song, I promise I will always love you, I will always be there for you and keep you safe, and I will never, ever take advantage of you." He punctuated each firm vow with his fingers running deftly over her skin. This was the Doctor, the one who could see the turn of the universe, who could open the TARDIS doors with the snap of his fingers, who could turn whole armies back at the mention of his name, washing her feet. He repeated the ceremony with the other foot, and dried her off and kissed each ankle.

When he was finished, he set the bowl aside, wiping his hands off with the towel, and he smiled at her shyly as he held out a hand to help her stand. "Now, River, would you do me the honor of joining me for dinner?"

She took his hand, "Why yes, I think I will." River replied, and allowed herself to be led across the floor, her dress train flowing a good foot and a half behind her through the flower petals. She bowed her head, hoping he wouldn't see the small tear that ran down her cheek. Why did he have to be so amazing? He shouldn't have gone through all this trouble for her!

The trouble seemed to be the last thing on the Doctor's mind as he pulled her out onto a balcony. Again, River couldn't keep herself from gasping as she looked out around at her surroundings. It was positively beautiful. She rushed over to the balcony railing, looking out at the void of darkness. There was no ground under this balcony, it just looked out into endless space, where blue stars and rainbow nebulas and endless adventures beckoned. The view stole her breath away. A hand became known on her shoulder, and she turned to see the Doctor nodding toward the table with a bemused smirk on his face.

She smiled, "Sorry."

"I don't think I've ever seen you so speechless." He teased, pulling out her chair for her as she sat.

"Don't think I've ever eaten dinner on a balcony that looked out over deep space before." She quipped back.

He laughed, "Just wait until you taste the pasta. I got the guy that _invented_ pasta to make it for you." He twirled his fork around a bit of the dish and held it up to her, making a gesture that implied she should open her mouth. She quirked an eyebrow and did so, and he slipped the bite into her mouth.

She took it all in stride, as gracefully as possible. And he gently pulled the from her. Her eyes closed as the taste exploded in her mouth, and she purred in appreciation. "Wow."

"Yeah?"

"_Wow." _She repeated, chewing thoughtfully. He laughed, and River picked up a fork and wound another bite of pasta around it, holding it up to him and waving it slightly in invitation.

He leaned forward to take a bite, and she giggled mischievously, teasing him by pulling it back just out of his reach.

The Doctor pouted, "You're evil."

"Oh fine," She rolled her eyes and offered it up again. He grinned happily and reached for it, but she again brought it just out of range.

"_River_!" He whined. She laughed, and he did too, his large hand wrapping around hers as he finally captured the fork and took a bite, getting a dibble of sauce on the corner of his mouth in the process.

She chuckled, wiping off the sauce from his mouth with her thumb, "There you go, Sweetie."

When he had recovered, the Doctor poured champagne for them which, he announced proudly, was from the champagne planet, and served the rest of the food. They finished the dinner in easy silence. River sometimes let her eyes wander to stare at the view or into the hypnotizing flame of a candle. She couldn't believe that he'd gone through all that trouble to make this so special for her. He was trying so hard, and she found it endearing. As she looked into his eyes and he smiled goofily back, she found herself praying this night would never end. He was so perfect, so wonderfully daft, and clumsy, and brilliant, and _hers._

When there was no more food to be pushed around on the plate or champagne to swirl in the glass, the Doctor stood. He glanced out into the ballroom. "Ah, the band is here, brilliant." As if on cue, which they probably were, the intro to a song began to play. The Doctor offered her his arm with a daft grin, and River smirked and took it, walking out to the dance floor with him.

He stopped in the middle of the room to pull something from the inner pocket of his jacket, and for a minute River was expecting him to whip out his sonic. But no, it was a strip of red silk. A strip of red silk…_Oh._

_ Come up to meet you, tell you I'm sorry/ You don't know how lovely you are/ I had to find you, tell you I need you/ Tell you I set you apart._

The song began, and the Doctor handed her one end of the silk, which she wrapped around her hand as he did his. His fingers interlaced with hers, and he pulled her close, one hand on the small of her back.

"May I have this dance?"

_Tell me your secrets, and ask me your questions/ Oh let's go back to the start/ Running in circles, coming up tails/ Heads on a science apart._

Slowly, they began to dance, their bodies swaying gently against each other's in time to the music. The Doctor pressed his cheek to River's, whispering softly into her ear. "River, someday, you're going to meet me and I won't have a clue who you are. But even then…_even_ _then_, I want you to know… your Doctor still loves you." He paused, taking a deep breath, "And what I love about you, River, is that you don't always realize how beautiful you are to me…that's what _makes _you beautiful."

_Nobody said it was easy/ It's such a shame for us to part/ Nobody said it was easy/ No one ever said it would be this hard/ Oh, take me back to the start._

River closed her eyes, a tear streaking down her cheek as she rested her head on his shoulder as they danced together under the candlelit chandeliers. Their love was so complicated, and yes, she knew that someday this would all end. This was so like her Doctor. Of course, _of course_ she knew that no matter what happened, somewhere out there he loved her. Somewhere out there, her Doctor would always be there, flying in the stars, ready to come when she called, ready to pick her up. Time may try its best to rip them apart. But they would always find a way, there would always be an answer to pick them back up and pull them together.

_I was just guessing at numbers and figures/ Pulling the puzzles apart/ Questions of science, science and progress/ Do not speak as loud as my heart._

River laughed softly into his shoulder. The song was so perfect for him, she could tell why he picked it. His fingers threaded into her curls and she absentmindedly thought that her hair would probably be a mess by the end of this. He was so amazing… so amazing. The most amazing man in the Universe, and River Song got him. What had she done to deserve this? She swore she was going to make this through without breaking down, but as he gently rubbed a hand over her back and the song kept playing, she felt a lump growing in her throat.

_And tell me you love me, come back and haunt me/ Oh and I rush to the start/ Running in circles, chasing our tails/ Coming back as we are._

The song flowed and ebbed, climaxed, and then began to fade. The Doctor spun her once, and dipped her, catching her easily as her hair draped down behind her. His strong arms brought her back, always back to him, and he stopped their dancing for a moment as the song slowed. What else could he have possibly done to make this evening any more amazing?

He reached inside his jacket once more and pulled out a flower. An Iris. It's delicate petals formed around a strong stem. They were a light greeny-blue, rimmed in TARDIS-blue that bled into a star-like center. It stuck out amidst a room full of the classic beauty of blood red rose petals. The Doctor smiled shyly, judging her reaction. "River Melody," He said softly, "The only flower of its kind." He tucked it behind her ear and cupped her cheek, pulling her in to kiss her forehead affectionately. He'd made a flower for her. That silly, ridiculous man!

The last lyrics of the song were lost in the moment as River closed her eyes and simply choked out an overwhelmed sob.

In surprise and confusion at the her reaction, the Doctor jumped and wrapped his arms around her, "River…what-what's wrong? Are you okay?" He sounded so absolutely worried that he'd done something wrong.

River shook her head. "I-I'm fine, Doctor…this, this is so beautiful…I can't believe you went through all this trouble for me."

"Th-then what's wrong?" He asked her tentatively.

Another sob escaped her, and the Doctor simply laughed and held her tight at what she despairingly exclaimed next.

"All I got you was a pocket watch!"

He shook his head and chuckled, "That's more than enough for me."

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_**Fin.** _


End file.
